Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Yeah! Burger - Too Easy - Meh! Burger

You all know the story, Shaun Doty opened a burger shack. If you've read my reviews, you know how tired I am of burger places in Atlanta. Even Paul, from Panos and Pauls opened one (Burger Club).

OK, first things first - the name. In the planning stages, they originally wanted to call it Good Burger. Was the name "Yeah! Burger" supposed to be a step up from Good Burger?!?!?! Honestly, Bobby (Flay's) Burger Palace (yes it's a real) is a better name.

My understanding is the lines here have been outrageous, but we went for lunch on a late Saturday and experienced no wait at all. The feel of the restaurant is surprisingly corporate. Like a, "Haven't I been here before," corporate. Then, after sitting down and waiting for the food, Kins realized that it essentially looks just like Farm Burger. And man is she right. AND the concept, grass-fed and organic is exactly the same too.

So how did Yeah! stack (pun intended) up to the competition? The burgers are fast-food style - meaning that you can't order them to temp, that they come as a double stack and that the flavor of the actual beef is somewhat neglected. In short I thought it ranks under most of the new burger places. The patties were dry. Crumbly almost. The toppings were nice, including some homemade BBQ sauce and thick sliced bacon. The buns were kind of the star - both H&F wheat (really good) and white.

The fries and onion rings were both fresh and good. Fries could have stood to be a tad crispier and o-rings a tad less battered. But good, A- efforts.

The chocolate shake kind of sucked. It's made with soft serve. I could go on and on about how it's impossible to achieve shake greatness with soft serve but will spare you. Essentially the proper texture can't be reached. The shake also had that disodium phosphate aftertaste that McDonalds shakes have.

In terms of value, I paid over 30 bucks for two fast-food burgers, two sides, and a shake...

Lastly, for those who compare it to Flip Burger up the street, get a clue. If you go to Flip Burger and order a beef burger, you're missing the point entirely. The creativity and flavors shine on non-traditional burger patties and both the fries and shakes are outrageously better than Yeah!'s. And by the way, Flip Burger's beef burgers are still better that Yeah!'s. I'll save this rant for another review.

If you're in Atlanta and want one great burger, this is not your stop. If you are in Atlanta and want two great burgers, this is also, not your stop. I know I use the term meh far to often, but Meh! Burger.

About Me

No degree from Le Cordon Bleu. No 25 years experience in Restaurant consulting. That's right: No formal qualification in food. Unless of course you consider that I like to eat and I do very often. Those are my credentials.
I've grown up in Atlanta and find it to be a great selection of some tasty, but sometimes hidden, vittles.
Additionally, I enjoy cooking and want to share my experiences in my home's kitchen with the reader.